Bells Larsen - Blurring Time
Back in May 2024, I had the pleasure to attend the Land of Talk tour show at The Aviary, where I happened to stumble into Bells Larsen as an accompanying tour act. Soft spoken and with candid demeanour, Bells took the stage with what I’ve come to know now as some of the tracks featuring in his latest album Blurring Time.
Quinton Barnes - Black Noise
Now we are given a bit of a different take on Quinton Barnes’ creativity with the release of Black Noise only a few months after CODE NOIR was released. Both conceptually and in execution, this new album is a thoughtful interrogation into noise, improv, and experimental sound composition which started out of a casual 2022 tweet that he tossed into the aether: “‘I want to work with noise/improv musicians in some capacity … not sure how yet but the idea is there’.”
Backxwash - Only Dust Remains
The question was left hanging at the end of the former trilogy: what would a new Backxwash release look like after that set of releases? The answer that the album offers is a reconstruction of Backxwash sound prior to God Has Nothing To Do With This informed by the accomplishments of the last decade of her musical career.
DVTR - Live aux Foufounes
Live aux Foufounes is not derivative or tired or formulaic. It’s fresh and alive and pulsating. The music still contains some of the straight-time fury of punk, with bombastic, short songs played fast and loud. But they are also played really, really well.
Men I Trust - Equus Asinus & Equus Caballus
Men I Trust has released two excellent records when measured in their own terms. Both of these albums show off two aspects of how this band approaches composition and songwriting, and it is really up to the listener to discern which of these approaches appeals best to their aesthetic sensibilities.
Sled Island Edition: Thanya Iyer - TIDE/TIED
TIDE/TIED isn’t about quick fixes or grand gestures. It’s about the slow, patient work of coming back to yourself and to each other amid a fractured world.
Priors - Daffodil
On this Thursday’s Pick of the Week, Nigel Young reviews Daffodils by Priors.